Brazil floods drive thousands from their homes

“When I left for work on Monday, I could still get through the water-logged street with my car. By the afternoon, the army was rescuing people with a truck,” says Porto Alegre resident Magda Moura.

That was the day that the floods which have devastated parts of southern Brazil cut off the building she lived in.

“By Wednesday, the water had reached [a height of] 1.7m (5ft 6in),” she recalls.

The 45-year-old physiotherapist is one of 408,100 people who have been displaced by floods triggered by torrential rain in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul.

At least 116 people have died across the state and, with many towns still cut off by the flood waters, hopes of finding the more than 140 people who are still missing are dwindling.

Much of the state capital, Porto Alegre, has been plunged into darkness by the flood, which has damaged power and water treatment plants, also leaving most residents without drinking water.

Magda, 45, and her husband, 49-year-old Angelo Tarouco, spent two days rescuing neighbours cut off by the flood waters which surrounded their high-rise buildings.

“Of all the occupants of the towers, only a young couple remained on the premises,” she says.

The couple told her that they had enough provisions to last them for a week but with food and water scarce in the city she cannot help but worry about them.